In the fourth semester of study, students are guided in the production of the thesis for three public contexts: the Design Thesis Exhibition, the Design Panel, and the Post-Thesis Project. The Design Thesis Exhibition is an annual event in the Mason Gross Galleries. The Design Panel consists of presentations to guest critics, art and design peers, and the wider design community. The Post-Thesis Project carries the student's work forward and to new audiences in a form of the student's choice, such as an article, book, website, or exhibition.
Thesis Essay
Students formulate an argument/idea about their Thesis Project. They describe, analyze, and synthesize this argument in the form of an illustrated and captioned five-page essay.
Thesis Panel Presentation Students deliver a verbal and visual presentation of the Thesis Project. They build upon the Thesis Essay, translating words and images into a new format and continuing to develop their ideas after completing their Thesis Exhibition.
Post-Thesis Project
Students reconfigure part or all of their Panel Presentation for a new audience to carry the work forward to a wider public. The format for this work is open; possibilities include a website, article, book, exhibition, or public display. The audience could be specific or broad, within design or the general public. Students are supported to seek out and apply for grants and other opportunities to distribute, publish, exhibit, or otherwise extend this work.
Design Statements Students craft writing that describes and places in larger context their design approach, methods, and realms of interest. Students write three versions of varied lengths and for varies uses in the real world beyond graduation. The long version is two pages; medium version is one page; short version is one paragraph.
Graduate Programs in Art and Design 
